A Vishnu idol, part of a Buddha statue and several pottery items dating back to the Gupta, Sen, and Pala dynasties will find place at an upcoming museum under Calcutta High Court, thanks to the efforts of Biplab Roy, the administrator general and official trustee of West Bengal who collected the artefacts from the Sunderbans last week.
Roy’s journey as a collector of artefacts began in 2019, right after he was posted at his current office on 1 Kiran Shankar Ray Road, BBD Bag. The ground floor and 10th floor of the building had been allotted to the office during Siddhartha Shankar Ray’s tenure as chief minister of West Bengal.
Biplab Roy with an old cannon
“When I first took office, I found the old record room on the ground floor had been locked for over 30 years. By that time, out of my own interest, I had started collecting historical documents from the office and realised that several such documents could be locked up in the record room,” Roy said.
Despite his attempts, none of the workers at the office came forward to help in because they thought the room would be filled with snakes. As the head of the institution, Roy took all the necessary precautions and the room was finally opened in the presence of officers of the wildlife department and Kolkata Police.
Artefacts collected by Roy
“The first thing we encountered was an 18-inch-thick layer of dust on the floor. The room was filled with old documents, boxes and chests. I managed to enter the room with the help of Group D staff Moni Sarkar and home guard Satya Mondal,” Roy said.
As Roy began his search, he realised that he had unlocked a treasure trove. Historical documents recording Prince Dwarakanath Tagore’s house mortgage, transfer of land from the Mughal era, and judgments from 1836 by the lower court and Calcutta High Court, Fort William were found.
The most valuable artefacts were found inside a chest. “There were three swords partly made of gold, one uniform with gold buttons, hunting shoes and some damaged photographs. We knew it belonged to someone important but didn’t know who,” said Roy. After a few months of research, Roy discovered that the artefacts belonged to none other than King Henry V.
Roy decided to make a small museum with all the artefacts and documents he had found. He met the Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court, Prakash Srivastava, in 2022 and the latter encouraged Roy to go ahead. After the meeting, it was decided that a special museum would be built on a 5,000 sq ft area. It was decided that the museum would be called Judicial Museum and Research Centre and it would be supervised by the high court.
A set of antique guns
Encouraged, Roy continued collecting historical relics and artefacts from old gun shops, private collectors, and police stations and even raided the house of businessmen who were illegally selling Indian archaeological materials.
The collection of more than 40,000 artefacts was soon worth crores. Roy and his team travelled to the Sunderbans last week and collected the Vishnu and Buddha idols from a local school. Both were found about 10 to 20 years ago while excavating the ground for farming or building structures. While the museum is all set to open by the end of March, the location is yet to be finalised.
“I'm aware of the upcoming museum and what Biplab Roy has been doing is commendable. He has single-handedly been collecting artefacts. I am sure his work will make a mark,” a senior law practitioner at Calcutta High Court said.